The assembly elections in Telangana are in full swing, with 20.64% per cent of the voters casting their ballots by 11 am for the 119 seats, as per the Election Commission of India. The ECI also reported the voter turnout for various districts till 9 am, with Adilabad leading the pack with 13.50 per cent, followed by Jogulamba Gadwal with 12.02 per cent. The lowest turnout was recorded in Hanumankonda with 6.89 per cent.
The polling for the 119 Assembly constituencies in Telangana kicked off on Thursday morning, with a whopping 2,290 candidates vying for the seats. The candidates belong to 109 national and regional parties, and include 221 women and one transgender.
The fate of these candidates will be decided on December 3, when the votes will be counted along with the results of the other four states- Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram.
The ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi has fielded candidates in all 119 seats, while, as per the seat-sharing agreement, BJP and actor Pawan Kalyan-headed Jana Sena Party are contesting in 111 and eight seats respectively, while Congress has given one seat to its ally CPI, and fighting from 118 others. Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM has put up candidates from nine seats.
For a higher voter turnout, several leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi have urged the people of the state to exercise their franchise.
The BRS is banking on its track record and promises of the last 10 years to win the trust of the voters. The Congress is hoping to get enough support to form its first government in the state. The BJP is also vying to end the “misrule and corruption” of the BRS. Some of the prominent candidates in the fray are Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, his son and minister K T Rama Rao, state Congress President A Revanth Reddy, and BJP Lok Sabha members Bandi Sanjay Kumar and D Arvind.
If K Chandrashekar Rao, popularly known as KCR, secures another term in office, he will become the first Chief Minister from a Southern state to get a third consecutive term in office. KCR is contesting from two seats: his original seat Gajwel and Kamareddy. He is facing a tough challenge from BJP leader Etela Rajender in Gajewal and Congress state unit chief Revanth Reddy in Kamareddy.
